In order to access space or near space, payloads must gain significant potential and kinetic energy. Traditionally, regions above 50 km in altitude can only be accessed using rocketry, where mass is expelled at high velocity in order to achieve thrust in the opposite direction. This process is extremely inefficient as rockets must counter the gravitational force during the flight by carrying mass in the form of propellant and must overcome atmospheric drag. In contrast, if a payload is hauled to space or near space along an elevator system, the work done is significantly less as no expulsion mass must be carried to do work against gravity, and lower ascent speeds in the lower atmosphere can virtually eliminate atmospheric drag. Elevator cars' motion may also be powered remotely by electrical or inductive means, eliminating the need to carry any fuel.
It has previously been proposed, most famously by Arthur C. Clarke in his 1978 novel, The Fountains of Paradise, that a space elevator could be constructed using a cable and counter-balanced mass system. For Earth's gravity and spin rate, such a solution requires a cable of at least 35,000 km in length and a counter balance mass similar to a small asteroid. Such a system could be constructed by launching the cable into space or manufacturing it in situ and lowering it into contact with Earth. However, the technological obstacles that must be overcome, including the construction of a cable with suitable strength characteristics or the in-space construction of the apparatus, have not been realized since the concept was popularized by Clarke. Known materials are simply not strong enough to enable the construction of a cable of that length that would even be capable of supporting its own weight.